"Valor, stop attacking. Pull back and widen the distance!"
Ash reacted immediately.
The move Flail was a close-range physical attack. To unleash its power, the user had to get close enough to physically strike its opponent through violent body movements and desperate thrashing.
Since Goldeen had successfully activated Flail, the best response was obvious.
Retreat.
Deny it the opportunity to make contact.
As long as Magikarp stayed out of range, Goldeen's desperate counterattack would be completely wasted.
Sure enough—
"Goldeeeen!!"
Splash!
Crash!
Goldeen's body suddenly convulsed violently.
Its fins flailed wildly.
Its tail whipped through the water.
Within a radius of nearly a meter around its body, the seawater churned violently. Sand and sediment exploded upward, turning the surrounding water cloudy and murky.
However—
Because Magikarp had already withdrawn in advance, it avoided the entire attack zone.
Valor remained completely unharmed.
Meanwhile, Goldeen had exhausted a large amount of stamina for nothing.
"Goldeen!"
Seeing his Pokémon emerge from the muddy water covered in sand and breathing heavily, the young man on the beach cried out anxiously.
At this point, he was genuinely shocked.
He had never imagined that even Ash's weakest Pokémon could be this powerful.
By all appearances, Magikarp's level was lower than Goldeen's.
And everyone knew Magikarp only possessed two publicly known moves:
Tackle.
Splash.
That was it.
Yet despite such a seemingly simple move set, fighting against it felt incredibly difficult.
Nor was the young man the only one surprised.
The spectators surrounding the battlefield were equally stunned.
Nobody had expected Magikarp to be this strong.
Many of them subconsciously imagined themselves standing in the young man's position.
If they were facing this golden Magikarp...
If they were facing those missile-like charges...
Could they successfully respond?
Could they counterattack?
After seriously considering it, most reached the same conclusion.
No.
Not really.
At equal levels, especially after already taking one solid hit, very few Pokémon could effectively respond to such relentless pressure.
Most would end up exactly like Goldeen—
Forced into a passive defensive position.
Fortunately, Flail had finally interrupted Magikarp's assault.
At the very least, Goldeen now had a chance to catch its breath.
And unlike before, it hadn't been sent tumbling helplessly through the water.
Now Goldeen was completely focused.
Alert.
Prepared.
Waiting.
Since Magikarp's Tackle traveled in a straightforward path, everyone assumed Goldeen would have a much easier time dodging the next attack.
At least, that's what they thought.
If Ash knew what the crowd was thinking, he would probably laugh.
You all underestimate what a Mastered-level move can do.
The corners of Ash's mouth lifted slightly.
"Valor."
"Stir up the water."
"Circle around and prepare another Tackle."
The moment the command was issued, Magikarp immediately understood.
Years of fighting together had forged extraordinary trust and coordination between Trainer and Pokémon.
Without hesitation—
Splash!
Valor transformed into a golden torpedo once again.
"Goldeeeen!"
Goldeen immediately panicked.
The young Trainer prepared to issue orders as well.
But to everyone's surprise—
Magikarp didn't charge directly at Goldeen.
Instead, it stopped roughly five feet away and began circling rapidly around its opponent.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Its incredible speed churned up the sandy seabed.
Clouds of sediment rose into the water.
Soon, a circular ring of murky water formed around Goldeen.
A muddy prison.
A hunting ground.
A kill zone.
The cloudy water completely surrounded Goldeen.
Yet because Magikarp wasn't directly attacking, neither Goldeen nor its Trainer dared make any reckless moves.
Goldeen slowly rotated in place.
Its eyes nervously tracked the ring of murky water surrounding it.
Seconds passed.
Nothing happened.
Gradually, the tension in Goldeen's body eased slightly.
Its Trainer also thought they might finally have an opportunity to recover some stamina.
Then—
Ash moved.
Valor moved.
"Magikarp!"
"Continuous Tackle!"
WHOOSH—!
BANG!!
From within the muddy ring, the completely concealed Magikarp suddenly burst forth.
Like a golden missile launched from ambush.
It slammed directly into Goldeen's back.
BANG!
"Goldeeeen!!"
Goldeen cried out in agony.
"Goldeen!"
"Get out of there!"
"Break through the encirclement!"
The young man finally panicked.
Only now did he realize that, without noticing, the battle had once again fallen entirely under Ash's control.
Unfortunately—
Goldeen's condition had already deteriorated badly.
Its stamina was depleted.
Its speed had fallen dramatically.
And now the muddy-water ambush zone had already been completed.
Breaking out wouldn't be easy.
Whoosh!
BANG!
Every time Goldeen attempted to escape—
Magikarp appeared.
Sometimes from the front.
Sometimes from the left.
Sometimes from the right.
Every charge intercepted Goldeen and slammed it back into the center of the muddy ring.
WHOOSH!
BANG!
WHOOSH!
BANG!
WHOOSH!
BANG!
The attacks came from every direction.
A complete three-hundred-sixty-degree assault.
Neither Goldeen nor its Trainer could predict where Magikarp would emerge next.
The young Trainer became increasingly frantic.
Meanwhile, Goldeen was rapidly sinking into despair.
Finally, realizing that defeat was imminent if he did nothing, the young man shouted:
"Goldeen!"
"Use Water Pulse!"
"Now!"
"Goldeeen?"
Goldeen glanced around the muddy ring.
Its expression was full of confusion.
It couldn't see Magikarp.
It had no idea where to attack.
So in the end—
It simply relied on instinct.
And somehow—
It guessed correctly.
Seeing the direction Goldeen fired its Water Pulse, even Ash looked slightly surprised.
By pure luck, Goldeen had actually found Magikarp's location.
However—
Goldeen was already running on fumes.
After enduring so many attacks, it was little more than a spent force.
Even if it unleashed one final burst of power, it posed very little threat.
Ash calmly issued his final command.
"Valor."
"Use Splash to dodge."
"Then finish it."
"With Tackle."
The battle's conclusion had already been decided.